Sunday, August 28, 2011

Mounted like a Fraisier with biscuit joconde instead of a regular genoise, Strawberry chutney is reduced with Vinaigre de Xeres and Sucre Roux. Intercoller with fresh cut strawberries resting on a leger mousseline.

Saturday, August 27, 2011

bukan...bukan ...nope..nope! this is not a Tiramisu. Is another composition my apprentices and I put together! We made a pistachio paste for a Joconde au Pistache, cooked an appareil to infuse with coffee to make a Crème Bavarois. Interpose with sauce chocolat. Lastly, we roasted some walnut and spin it with cacao en poudre and sucre glace for the sommet.

Friday, August 12, 2011

(Please bare with the long long description I found from WiKi...which I find very concise)

Ciabatta bread is an Italian bread which is also popular in other parts of the world, thanks to its versatility and distinct flavor. Around Italy, numerous regions lay claim to the invention of the bread, and slightly different versions of it are baked in different areas. Many bakeries both inside and outside of Italy carry a version of the bread, since it is highly popular. It is also possible to make ciabatta bread at home, although it can be difficult to wade through warring recipes, and only experienced bakers should attempt it, with the aid of a good bread book.
There are a number of different ways to make ciabatta bread. The most simple uses a basic yeast and white flour recipe, although it tends to be lacking in complexity. Most bakers use a biga or sourdough starter to make a bread with an open crumb and slightly soured flavor. For cooks who are not familiar with making rustic or artisan breads, attempting ciabatta bread can be very frustrating, and it may take multiple tries. It is generally considered to be a poor choice of bread for beginners. When made well, ciabatta bread has a moist crumb and a crackly, crisp crust.
In Italian, ciabatta means “slipper,” leading some people to call the bread “slipper bread.” The name is a reference to the shape, which does sort of resemble a slipper. Ciabatta bread tends to be short, wide, and long, which makes it ideally suited to sandwiches. It is also offered with olive oils and other dips, since the crumb absorbs dips and liquids very well, and it may be toasted when served for this purpose. Dried ciabatta bread can also be turned into excellent croutons.
Some bakers add herbs, oil, or olives to their ciabatta bread before baking it, turning out a bread which slightly resembles focaccia, although it has a less dense crumb. Others may make it with milk, producing ciabatta al latte, and a whole wheat version is also available. Panini, the classic grilled Italian sandwiches on hearty breads, are often made with ciabatta bread.
Like many artisan breads, ciabatta bread tastes best when it is fresh. People should try and purchase it freshly baked on the day they intend to use it, although wrapping it in plastic can help it to last longer. However, plastic wrapping will tend to make the bread slightly soggy, which can be an undesirable or unacceptable trade-off. To refresh ciabatta bread which is slightly stale or soggy, it can be sprinkled with water and toasted in an oven immediately before serving. Otherwise, stale ciabbata bread can be allowed to go truly stale and turned into croutons.

A baguette is a classically long, thin loaf of bread which is intimately associated with France and particularly Paris. The bread has been made in France since the 1800s, although it started to become truly popular in the early 1900s. Outside of France, baguettes are often found at bakeries and grocers since they make excellent sandwich and picnic loaves. Like other French breads, they are best when fresh, and will stale rapidly.
The word “baguette” is derived from the Latin baculum, for “rod” or “stick.” It is a diminutive, meaning “little rod,” just as other words in French which end in -ette are classified as diminutives. A traditional baguette does strongly resemble a rod, since it is long and classically narrow. Wider loaves are called flutes in French, and they are also very popular. Since baguettes cook quickly, they are often the first offering of the morning at French bakeries.
A true baguette contains only flour, water, salt, and yeast, by French law. Breads with other ingredients cannot carry the baguette name in France, and many bakers take their baguette making very seriously. Paris actually sponsors an annual competition for the best baguette made in city limits. Other artisan breads are also featured in this competition, although the winner of the baguette division is usually a topic of intense interest.
Several things set baguettes aside from other loaves of bread. The first is their dense, crusty exterior, which is typically slashed multiple times before baking to make a puffy, crusty top. The crust also tends to be slightly chewy and elastic. The crumb of the bread is white, with large irregular holes, and it is also rather chewy. This chewy texture is often accomplished with a starter, which will develop a more complex flavor in the finished bread.
Outside France, a baguette may be sold as a French stick or French loaf. The breads are ideally suited for taking on picnics, especially the shorter and more compact versions. Spreads such as cheese and pâté can be applied to baguettes, or they can be used as sandwich breads. A good crusty baguette can also be served with soup, salad, and other meals. If you must store a baguette for more than a day, wrap it in paper and then in plastic. This will allow the bread to breathe without drying out, although the texture and flavor will suffer slightly.

Sunday, August 7, 2011

I realized many people want to improve, practice and refresh their conversational french. Therefore I decided to reach out to all levels of French (,want-to-be-French and native) speakers to my bakery cafe whereby I will serve and speak to you in french.

Check-in to this informal visit at my boulangerie/salon de thé to get back in the swing of the French language where no-stress conversations will take place.

Come alone or come with friends and meet others to practice. (take-away or sur place ;-)

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Millefeuille = A thousand layers. A thousand layers of what? Of pâte feuilletée (puff pastry) alternance of butter and dough. A very straight forward and old traditional recipe. Between the feuilletage is rich confectioner's custard with melted dark Belgium couverture. To cut wastages, my Millefeuilles are feuillé vertically instead of horizontally :-)

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Is a region in France where I spent many years soaked in her best kept secrets of cream and apples, Calvados, Normandy. Where the local would say : "C'est une régionoù il pleutcommedes vachesqui font pipi!" LOL

Calvados is also the name for apple brandy. Where also I have drank many farm-distilled Calvados (in secret ;-)...Is illegal to distille private mabuk minumun...hehe :-)

Modern means of production, managed with heartfelt care for the final outcome on a fussy selection of flours, grains, seeds, butters and oils allow me and my artisans to offer you the best kinds of fresh bread likely to be found anywhere in Kuala Lumpur.

In addition, where ever possible, I have been absolutely faithful to traditional recipes, while looking to support our local merchandisers and produce.

In the culmination of my time-tested methods, the finest ingredients, and a desire to produce only the best you may find in my bakery-café traditional favourites from artisanal viennoisseries, pâtisseries, gateaux de voyage, to even long-forgotten French regional specialities.

Come sit for a while here in my little bakery, surrounded by a plethora of the baker’s paraphernalia and instruments of his craft, and imbibe the sights, smells and tastes of the art of baking.

Here, you may enjoy fine coffees, popular soft drinks, and the occasional soup servings to accompany breads and pastries fresh out of Tommy Le Baker’s ovens.

Through my modest bakery, I hope you will join with me in my passion for good things, especially our breads: a significant part of culinary history that has brought joy, nutrition and life to mankind since time immemorial.

About Me

My love affair with bread and pastries began when I headed off to France to study Linguistics and translation. When I eventually graduted in 1999, the asian economic crisis had hit and job opportunities were scarce. It was around this time that I discovered my passion for baking, so I went back to France and took up a pastry chef course in Gregoire Ferrandi, (which is part of L'Ecole Superieure de Cuisine Francaise in Paris) and later became a certified pastry chef. After, I also studied to become a certified boulanger (baker). I've travelled all over rural areas in France, discovering how breads are made across the country. After I came back to Malaysia, I became involved in the food industry in a sales capacity. After meeting so many industrial customers and seeing how they made bread, I started longing for the breads I used to have in France. I opened my bakery, Tommy Le Baker in November 2010.